Piratetalia
by Luchia Ladrona
Summary: For some odd reason England is able to see Sey's true form: a mermaid! So she needs to find out why./Mostly Pirate!England x Mermaid!Seychelles, but also Pirate!Spain x Henchman!Romano and some other random pairings./Romance, Adenvture, hopefully humor
1. Chapter 1

**Piratetalia**

She was kind of irritated when seeing the huge ship in these waters. Around here humans were rarely seen. She didn't know much about the human's world. But one thing she knew by narrations was that humans used these swimming islands –as she went to call them- to cross the ocean because they weren't able to survive there otherwise. In contrast to her humans couldn't breathe in water. That's what she knew. How would a world without water be? It was a long time ago since she last saw a ship. Back then she was still just a little child and all which remained was a blurry memory. Her curiosity grew.

Her fellow friend, a sword fish, had a bad feeling. "Don't swim near it!" he said. He was afraid of humans. They'd probably want to catch and eat him. So he usually avoided being near them. But Sey, like the young lively mermaid was called, didn't listen. She was too fascinated. By looking at the huge black flag which was decorated by a skull head they could tell it was a pirate's ship. Bad people were not able to see virtuous creatures like mermaids anyway. So at least for her there was nothing to be afraid of. She touched the moving timber she knew ships were made of. This plant didn't grow in the ocean. It was foreign to her. How could people live on things like this? She kind of climbed above to be able to peek on deck.

There were two men, one who appeared to be older and one who seemed to be just in his 20s. The mermaid was not able to look in the old man's face because she was facing his back. But she could take a look right into the younger ones. He seemed to have just one eye left because one of his eyes was covered by a patch. His hair had a smutty blonde tone. "Kwon, the blonde guy must be of higher rank, I suppose. Look at his clothes!" she pointed out to the sumptuous ornaments which decorated the blonde guy's clothing. But all the sword fish did was complaining, "That they can't see you doesn't mean they can't see me! I bet I'll end as their dish if they recognize me! Let's get away from here, please!" But the mermaid shook her long brown hair. She didn't really care, "Don't be such a coward."

"The treasure must be hidden somewhere in these bays." The younger man who wore the embellished clothing went on commanding, "Steer the course, henchman!" "Aye!" he answered and showed a map to his captain. The got long in the tooth navigator stroke his finger over the paper and hint at the dangers on the path they had chosen, "We would have to pass this path but I've heard of legends where ships burst into pieces at these coasts. It might be too dangerous, Captain." The still so young captain folded his arms before his chest and wholeheartedly said, "That happened because of the seductive singing voices of the sirens. They can drive seaman insane." The elder navigator answered irritated, "You are joking, aren't you, Captain?" But he shook his head, "I'm never joking!" Then he went on commanding, "It might get dangerous but I don't care. The treasure is said to be a big one, so I want to make it our possession before someone else does."

Right when he wanted to go back to his cabin the young captain caught sight of the mermaid who was peeking on the deck. He made an exerted face and a pointing move with his head, "Look, there's one of them." The navigator turned around but couldn't see her, so he turned back and asked his captain, "Don't you feel well? First you were talking about a flying bunny you pretended to have seen and now a siren appears to you…" But the captain of the ship didn't really listen. Instead he approximated the creature he just discovered by a few steps. "She is so beautiful…" he said.

Sey recognized that this young man really seemed to be able to see her. She got nervous, "Kwon, does he actually look at me?" The fish began to panic, "No. He's a filthy pirate. Only humans with a pure heart can see creatures like you. He probably has seen ME. So I better shall leave or I'll end as his dish…" And these were the last words he spoke before diving back into the ocean. So Sey was left behind alone while the young man was coming closer and closer. She considered to follow her fishy friend but for some unknown reason hesitated. Instead she couldn't resist risking a closer look at this young man. What would he do now if he really was able to see her? He might have just one eye left though his gaze was very vigorous, it's green colour so intensive. For a short time they just stared at each other in silence, only talking through their eyes. It was like her breath broke off for a minute. But then the pirate moved forward stretching out his hand to her. This made her startle. She immediately took flight into the ocean before he could reach her.

When she put her hands on her chest she could feel her heart pounding like hell. She simmered with excitement, "Oh my God, he was so close..!" Only now she realized how dangerous the situation was she found herself in a few seconds ago. She felt dizzy. Maybe she better shouldn't tell anyone about what has happened. That would just make unnecessary waves… literally.

From a save place she observed the pirate's reaction. He was turning around like he was searching something... or someone. Her! This was proof, "He REALLY was able to see me!" Sey pondered, "How can this be? He's a filthy pirate, someone who does bad things. How can someone like that have a heart pure enough to be able to see me?" She really wanted to know.

The navigator tapped his captain's shoulder. "It's nothing but the sea out there. You probably just lack vitamins. That's a common illness here on deck and sometimes makes the mind fool around." "But I've seen her, honestly!" the captain assured. "She's hiding in the ocean for sure. Mermaids are timid." he went on. The elder man encompassed his shoulders intending to guide him back to deck. "You should take a nap. You'll need your spirit to seek for the treasure." But the young man hit away his navigator's hands roughly, "So you want to say I am just fantasizing?" Without losing following words he left the deck and went back to the interior of the ship.

**End of Chapter One**

Thank you for reading. I'm new to this side and this is my first fan fiction ever in English. I've tried my best but since English is not my native language (it's German), some expressions or grammar use might be weird. I'm especially insecure regarding the correct use of vocabulary to create a vintage atmosphere adequate to the pirate's era. For example, I'm dissatisfied that the navigator addresses his captain just by using "you". But I'm not sure if "thy" would be the right choice to create the correct atmosphere... : /

That's why I want to ask, **_is there anyone who is native in (British) English and would like to be my beta reader? : )_**

This is going to be a romance/fantasy/comedy story I think. Can you tell who the characters are since I haven't revealed their (full) names yet? Please tell me how you like it so far.

Bye bye 3


	2. Chapter 2

_Gosh, uploading a new chapter to a story is a pain in the ass, srsly! But I hope this worked now..._

_This chap contains lots of fluff :D_

Piratetalia

Chapter Two!

Some time has passed while the ocean was staying calm. Kwon, as the sword fish was called, has given up to jibe and just followed the little mermaid. Even though Sey had this strange moment with the fair-haired pirate something deep in her told her to follow the ship. And she was not the type to think everything through. Most times she just followed her intuition. This time was no exception. She couldn't even say why but she felt a strong sentiment that something would happen when she only kept following although she was still… disturbed by what had happened.

The ship went on and finally passed the dangerously narrow bays the navigator had mentioned. In these narrows the oceans wasn't that calm anymore. The waves tossed against the cliffs and burst into drops. They played with the ship and shook it heavily. In these uneasy waters it wasn't easy even for Sey to follow the pirates. Then the ship stopped. When she climbed onto one of the several rocks Sey was able to see the entrance to something that looked like a cave. Before the pirates were able to weight their anchor suddenly some blasts could be heard. Not even a single second later a big bomb crushed into the pirate's ship: They were attacked by other pirates who were already there!

Sey was shocked and covered her open wide mouth with one hand. No, she didn't want this fair-haired pirate to die. Not yet! She first had to find out why on earth he was able to see her. It was important to her and she couldn't even tell why. Maybe because this inaccuracy was the first happening which lighted up her boring days for some time?

"Kwon, look! It's terrible!" Some other bombs crushed into the ship before it was even able to strike back. There was no change to escape either. "We have to help them!" Sey shouted and repaired herself for the rescue. But enough was enough. The sword fish didn't share her thoughts at all. "Don't swim any closer!" he demurred. "Why would you help them? They aren't even your friends. It's dangerous." "But…" Sey started. "But they die. Some might drown in these waters." She felt sorry for them. The fish shook his head vehemently. "This is ridiculous!" Sey squint her eyes, "As if I ever cared!" And then she threw herself into the water.

Thanks to her mermaid tail she was able to handle the heavy waves here in some way. The closer she got to the ship the more she could hear and see of the battle field. The air was smoky. She paid heed to not be seen. Who knew who else was able to see her? Some of the pirates under the huge black flag decorated by the epic white shark shaped skull were still defending their ship but they had no chance. The next bomb burst the ground which their feet were sanding on into pieces. The little mermaid couldn't even see if they fell into the water or were smashed by the bomb as well. She drove into the water to hide herself from the falling pieces. The power of the detonation pushed her somewhat away though.

Under water she caught sight of a body that was trying to reach the surface. Additionally he was bleeding horribly. In worst case his blood would allure some sharks. Despite his struggling he didn't seem to have any chance because he has fallen too deep into the ocean. When Sey caught his arm he already fainted. But she didn't give up and pulled him to the surface. He didn't recover his consciousness though. So Sey would have to land him. When the mermaid adjusted his huge hat in order to give air a change to tough his face she recognized the blonde pirate from just recently. It even affirmed her to rescue him. If he died now she would never get an answer to her question. The only human who actually had been able to see her in her hitherto life was a child because children are pure hearted and own the power of imagination. Maybe a woman would also be able to see her because their hearts were often softer. But a man? Most of them appeared too gruff. Ok, this pirate was still pretty young. So maybe he hasn't given up all hope already?

These were the thoughts running through Sey's mind while pulling the young unconscious pirate to the beach farer away. She lay him down on the ground. The hat fell off his head and landed in the sand. It was rough sand, even some grit, covered with many little shells. She laid an ear on his chest. His heart was beating so he must have been alive. But his chest wasn't moving: He wasn't breathing! Sey began to panic a little. He was a stranger... She hesitated but then stroke some strands of hair out of his face and gave him the breath of life. He twitched some fingers and started to cough. Nevertheless the pirate didn't regain his consciousness fully. So he fell back into some kind of semi-consciousness. At least he was breathing again. Sey was relieved. He looked kind of helpless though.

She looked at the wound on his arm. It had to hurt horribly. She ripped off his coat and the shirt to get to this wound. The bomb must have stroke him. He was lucky though because he could have been dead. She bent down so her lips touched his injured skin and spread her mermaid magic to heal his wound with a kiss. She laid a hand on his arm while it was recovering and looked down into his face. Meanwhile she was moving his head slightly but his eyes stayed closed, grimacing and groaning as if it was painful to get healed. So again, with her other hand she stroke some hair out of his face. He seemed to calm down then. By this closer observation she realized his thick eyebrows. They were pretty noticeable, so she asked herself why she didn't pay attention to them earlier. It must have been that now as his eyes were closed his green emeralds didn't steal all her attention.

Thinking of which, why did he cover his other eye with a path? Sey was almost thankful for him being unconscious just for the moment. This gave her the chance to satisfy her curiosity and so she shoved the patch aside… revealing a painful looking scar! Somehow looking at it she felt sorry for him. He must really have been through something. "Poor guy." she thought and turned her head down to kiss his scar. Again her mermaid magic cured his wound because she wanted it to. She watched the scar disappearing while caressing his cheek. She smiled slightly.

Kwon watched this scene from farer away, "Oh no. Is she already that age? Don't fall for a human, Sey! That'll just cause trouble…"

The stranger seemed to wake up. He slowly opened his eyes, this time both of them. Sey totally ignored the fact that she probably was in danger right now and should hurry back into the ocean as soon as she could.

His eyes! She just loved their intense green colour. They took her away. She just kept lying watching over him while he was waking up slowly. His expression changed into some kind of confusion, "Wha… happened?" "I fished you out of the ocean." she answered with a soft voice, still caressing his cheek while lying on him.

"So you… rescued me?" Her hair tickled his him when he tried to move. It felt like silk. She was beautiful with those gorgeous big blue eyes and the slight smile on her shiny lips. It reminded him of the siren he had seen just a few hours ago. He was still sceptic though. Being awaken this enchanting way? This must have been a dream! Maybe he was already dead. So was this heaven? But wouldn't he better have deserved to be thrown into hell instead? He reached out his hand to touch the entrancing creature in front of him and stroke her fish tail… it felt like scales! So it really WAS this siren?

This kind of startled him. He tried to sit up to be able to take a look at the lower part of her appearance. And he saw her long siren tail. For a moment this got him aphasic, although his mouth stayed slightly open, astonished as he was. Without saying anything he looked back into the mermaid's face and his lips formed an airy smile.

His quick move caused her to wake up from her apathy and realize the situation she found herself in – again! So she started to hurry away from him to hide back in the ocean, leaving him alone. He tried to catch her, "Don't go!" but he was too slow even though he followed her into the sea. When it comes to water a fish tail was definitive a better mean of transportation than human feet, especially while wearing heavy boots.

"Come back, lady of the ocean!" he shouted. But his minor injuries in addition weakened his strength. He was not able to follow her. He just stood there, his feet touching the ground of the sea up to his knees. His eyes were searching for the dolce creature, "Who are you?" he repeated to himself. He couldn't still believe that this encounter may have been real…

He laid his own hand onto his cheek and tried to remember the gentle touch of her caresses. "I really felt it. This couldn't have been just another imagination, could it?"

Then he realized that his eye patch was missing. But… wait a moment! Did he just see with BOTH of his eyes? He closed his healthy eye and yes, he could still see everything! How was that just possible? His nemesis, the Spanish bastard, once cut him with his bloody axe. So did this mean he really was in heaven now? Or had the infernally beautiful looking siren just set a spell to blur his mind? There was so much traffic on his mind…

Sey had escaped back into the ocean so fast that she even lost sight of the blonde pirate. But… she had pick up a little souvenir which she showed to her fishy friend now with elation, "Kwon, look! I took the pirate's eye patch!" she said and waved the patch in her hand as if it was some kind of prize. But the sword fish just shook his head, "Why did you even rescue this human bastard?"

End of Chapter Two

_It's so hockey. I just love romance. Forgive me!_

_Next time the Spaniards are going to make their entrance 8D_

_Please tell me how you like it (or not) so far! :3 I need feedback!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Hey Guys,_

_Thank you so much for your nice support. I'm always happy to get feedback. I'm sorry I didn't upload something in a while. So finally a new chapter! :D_

_This chapter will be an exception in the regard of its main focus: It will NOT be Arthur x Sey!_

_I'm sad, too, but it's necessary for the story development, trust me. Love has to grow, you know? ;) (Oh, that rhymes… hahah) But I suppose most of you also appreciate the appearance of Antonio's crew…? ;D So here the Spaniards go!_

_(And don't worry: I'll leave a glossary for foreign words at the end.)_

**Piratetalia**

**Chapter 3**

"Cazzo!" A young man was swearing in the depth of the rain forest and threw a map on the ground. His rather dark brown hair shimmered a little olive-green when the sun light touched it. It was combed properly but one streak stood out unrelentingly, just like his facial expression which clearly revealed how annoyed he was.

"؟Qué pasó?" asked another man who wanted to know what happened. "The fucking treasure box is empty!" was the answer.

Well, now they would have to tell their Boss…

A wonderfully coloured parrot was sitting on the veranda of the ship. It began to flap its wings and roistered "¡Llegan! ¡Llegan! ¡Capitán, Romano llega!", then it used its wings to reach his seat on the shoulder of an athletic tall man. His impressive wine red coat swung open while he moved towards the railing and revealed some scars on his body. Sure, as El Captán of a Spanish pirate crew he had gotten trough some fights, especially with their enemies, the Brits.

Yet he was still covered by an aura of airiness and smiled. "Buena novedad, Raül." he caressed his parakeet with his left hand and the feathers which decorated his huge hat flapped in the wind.

The henchmen entered the ship. They didn't look satisfied… especially one of them…

"¡Romanooo!" When he heard the as-usual-awfully-much-too-happy voice of his also as-usual-awfully-much-too-happy approaching Captán, the facial expression of the young henchman changed into an even more pissed mode, "DON'T YOU DARE COME ANY CLOSER, BOSS!"

But it was too late… he got hugged by El Captán… in front of the others… AGAIN! Romano certainly didn't like this. He DETESTED it, so the curl of his hair which had already decided to be independent from the rest of his hair got even more independent. "I'm not a kid anymore, so already stop treating me like one, Antoño! Be more serious, damnit!"

But El Capitán still patted his head and laughed, "Lo siento. Perhaps next time I'll remember it." Then he finally got serious, "؟How was your expedition?"

Romano just sighed in frustration. The other henchman responded, "The treasure… was empty."

"؟NO TESORO, de verdad?" Captán Antoño wasn't pleased…

**Somewhere else in the seas:**

"Captain Kirkland, the Spaniards were located were you wanted them to be."

The British Captain sat on a chair in his chamber. On the table before him lay several maps and a devilish smile decorated his lips. "So you went into my trap, Fernandez. How pleasing!" And he chuckled viciously. "Oh how badly I would like to see the dumbfounded faces of these Spanish bastards when they find out that their treasure is just a fake!"

He took one of the maps before him and stood up to go out of his chamber, "Men, listen. I have an announcement!" He said to his crew.

"Full speed to the REAL treasure!" He held the map and a silver key into the sun that lighted his smutty blonde hair. "We know where the real treasure is located and we even have the proper key. Those Spanish dumbasses don't have any clue at all because their airy captain isn't aware of a shit."

The whole crew was laughing.

Then he opened a bottle of rum with his teeth and roared like a lion, "Let the party start!"

**Back on the El Capitán's ship:**

"Damned, why is my entrance activity cleaning the WHOLE floor of this ship? It's so tiresome…" An angular boy with deep brown almost black hair wasn't used to work like this at all. That wasn't how he imagined the life of pirates to be. At least he was guided by a supervisor. … But he looked scary!

And he looked different than the other people on this ship because he had pale hair and was taller than this ship's average inhabitants. He was leaning his back to the mast, his arms crossed, and watched the work of the newbie while smoking a HUGE pipe, "Stop complaining. If you want to become a proper henchman you have to learn this from the start… different than others…"

"…different than others? What do you mean by that?" The aspirant asked confused and caught a sharp gaze by his supervisor's ice blue eyes, "I'll give you some advice. Don't take Romano as your example!"

"Romano? Who is that?" The boy asked intimidated. The supervisor went away from the mast and sighed, "Since you're a newbie you probably don't know. Romano is that spoiled brat el Capitán once found in South Italy. You will recognize him pretty easily because one of his wisps of hair is awfully curled while the rest of his hair is straight. For no understandable reason el Capitán treats this brat like a treasure even though he's pertly, lazy and hoggish. He is good for nothing and just recently brought an EMPTY treasure chest."

The aspirant could feel the distaste in these words. He clasped the mob in his hands. The supervisor went on "Don't get me wrong, newbie. It's not that I hate that boy. But I hate it when brats pretend to be adults even though they don't behave like them. He still has a long way to go to become a man worth all the reputation el Capitán already gives to him."

The angular boy got curious, "The captain? How is he like?" His eyes shimmered excited. The older man's long scarf began to flap in the wind while he was approaching the aspirant. But he didn't pay any attention to the newbie's question.

"Romano did not listen to any of my orders even though he better should have since I am wiser and served as his supervisor. Don't ever dare to follow his example and ignore my orders. Work refusal only was successful in his case because that brat owns a special status by el Capitán… which you lack!"

A bad feeling was creeping in the angular boy. This man was not going to treat him nicely… was he?

Now he stood in front of the aspirant "Listen boy!" He had a serious facial expression, "The conclusion of what I just told you is the following: The only one you have to impress for now is ME, van de Velde. I am the one to give you orders."

He made a pause to inhale a piece of tobacco and breathed out a cloud of smoke. "So remember my name and do as I say." Then he kicked the bucket. It fell and all the water which was inside flew on the floor.

"Clean this up.", he ordered. He turned around so his scarf flapped again as if he himself controlled the wind.

The angular boy sighed angrily but then started his work. When van de Velde was out of sight he allowed himself to curse, "Damned that smoker! Why is he so grumpy? Now I need to clean this part again…" He sighed.

Then he took heart in some thought, 'I'm sure if I do my job properly I will get access to the captain.'

His cheeks got a rosy touch and he couldn't help but smile. He really wanted to meet the captain.

**End of Chapter 3**

_I suppose all you of you want to know who the heck that boy is, right? :D Well, you already know him. ;) I will reveal his identity in the next chapter._

_This chatting may appear long but **this chapter needs some explanation:**  
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_Just in case you haven't already recognized this anyway: I'm going to address to Arthur as "The Captain" whereas Antonio is called "El Capitán/Boss/Antoño"_

_Reasions?_

_a.) to distinguish between both of them without always just repeating their names_

_b.) to add some British and respectively Spanish flair_

_Also: I introduced a new character: The supervisor is Netherlands!_

_It wasn't really planned but just came like this because I needed someone who introduces Romano. (The Southern Italian "brat" will get an important role at a certain point. But later more.)_

_So why Netherlands?_

_I asked myself who on earth could complain about Romano and at the same time work in Spain's Armada. In Himaruyama-sama's world Netherlands does have a grudge against Spain because he was forced to work for him. So he must be in Spain's Armada, right? (I also read that he did have some alliance with England AGAINST Spain… so I'm not sure if I should not better have taken him into Captain Kirkland's crew… :-S If you know better please tell me! I'm not that History Queen.)_

_I don't think Himaruyama-sama has already revealed the relationship between Netherlands and Romano. But I can imagine that Netherlands tried to lecture Chibiromano when Spain was not around and epically failed. xD_

_Why Van de Velde?_

_Netherlands doesn't have a human name yet, does he? In my town there are some Art Nouveau houses built by a Dutch Architect. I kinda admire them. His name was Henry van de Velde which I think sounds very neat, at least the surname. I wasn't sure which forename I should give him though. "Henry" isn't really fitting for Himaruyama-sama's character. Do you know any better one?_

**GLOSSARY OF FOREIGN WORDS**

_(Italian) _Romano: "Cazzo!" – "Shit!"

_(Spanish)_  
>Random Spanish henchman: "؟Qué pasó?" – "What happened?"<p>

Raül (Antonio's parrot): "¡Llegan! ¡Llegan! ¡Capitán, Romano llega!" – "They come, they come! Romano comes!"

Antonio: "Buena novedad, Raül." – "Good news, Raul!"

Antonio: "Lo siento." – "I'm sorry."

Antonio: "؟NO TESORO, de verdad?" – "No treasure, really?"


	4. Chapter 4

**_Hey Guys,_**

_Thank you very much for your reviews on my last chapter, especially 18katrina, Butterfly Ninja 14, Pouceline de Gresiel (btw: What does your username mean? ) and rubyredroses1. Amerique, what you said was interesting. Maybe I will consider it._

_The following chapter was tough to write because I wasn't sure if I should make it more serious or humorous. But I think I found a good mixture...?  
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_There will be SO MUCH gossip and tattle about Arthur about Antonio in this chapter! It was fun to write! xD  
><em>

_Prepare yourself for TSUNDERE COLLABORATION! 8D  
><em>

**Piratetalia**

**Chapter 4**

"؟Romano, would you like to help me with the tomatoes?" It was dinner time on the Spaniard's pirate's ship. The huge black flag that showed a bull's skull was flapping intimidating in the rough wind of the seas while el Capitán decided to cook something in the caboose. He was hungry and surely his fosterling seemed to be as well. So he asked him for help.

Romano loved tomatoes. They were his favourite condiment and just had to be in almost every dish. So he surely wouldn't suffer from scurvy.

He was good at cooking. Nevertheless he usually left all the work to his Capitán… except for cutting tomatoes because that was always a great chance to nibble.

"Be sure to cut each tomato into equal pieces. And take care to not cut your fingers." The Spaniard advised.

"Do you think I'm stupid? I know how to cut tomatoes!" Romano cut the red vegetable with special eager, "I can do that! That the treasure chest was empty was not my fault!" He spat.

Antonio just sighed, "I didn't impute to you that it was your fault. I just offered some advice of how to cook." But the henchman wasn't pleased. He narrowed his eyes, his gaze still directed to the tomatoes on the table before him, "But I can hear it. Everyone's laughing at me for that. I can even FEEL their… their goggles! Don't pretend like you haven't noticed."

El Capitán just smiled and observed how pouty his lovely Southern Italian brat helped to prepare the meal. He cut the tomatoes with such eager that his peculiar hair curl even seesaw, "Romano, you should really pay attention to not cut your fing-"

But he was interrupted by the boy, "Do you even listen to what I just said?"

And then it happened: Romano cut his finger and blood flew. "Ahi!" He squinted one of his eyes when it happened.

The Spanish pirate widened his eyes with alert, "Are you ok?" And he quickly grasped at Romano's hand. The brunette's face expressed pain. The corners of his mouth were dragged down with his teeth still visible. He tried hard to hold back the tears of ache but they filled his amber eyes slightly by force. He still was a cry baby at times. To make it even worse the cut in his finger lost way too much blood than Romano was able to bear… because he couldn't see blood without getting sick. So he immediately began to feel ill when the red fluid left his skin.

The Spaniard instantly acted on instinct: He put Romano's finger into his mouth to stop the haemorrhage. The Italian ripped his eyes open and a rosy blush began to creep up his cheeks. While sucking on Romano's finger Antonio looked right into his amber eyes. This caused the little Italian's face to turn even redder, just like a tomato. The pertly brat suddenly became strangely meek, "An… Antonio…" He just said with a certain surprise in his voice.

The elder pirate didn't say anything. He just kept sucking on his henchman's finger and their eyes met each other in a deep gaze. Romano totally forgot about the pain and just stayed there frozen, without any move. He could feel his heart begin to beat faster and faster when Antonio suddenly licked up some blood that dropped down. He felt the warmth of his firm grip which released a prickling in his body. It caused him to feel tremulously and calmed down at the same time. An awkward silence filled the room and a certain magic lay in the air.

Both of them didn't notice that they were not alone. The newbie whose entrance job was to scrub the deck just came in to shelve the bucket and the mob to where they usually were stored. But since he was a duffer he let the mob fall and it bounced onto the floor by making noise. So the two pirates finally noticed his presence.

"Um, I'm sorry…" The newbie sheepishly said. He felt as if he had interrupted something, "Just pretend I was not there. I'm off immediately. I just wanted to shelve the mob and bucket…" He said and went a few steps backwards.

Romano fumed and stretched in his hand to free it from Antonio's grip. He began to nag at his Capitán, "What're you doing? Do you think that will keep it from bleeding? That's stupid, idiot!" His cheeks turned even redder…

Antonio just smiled back at Romano. But when he turned his head towards the newbie his smile added a sorta creepy touch. An aura of madness was accumulating around him. One could tell that he wasn't pleased to have been interrupted…

"What's the matter?" He asked coldly. But he didn't give the boy any room to answer and narrowed his view, "Who the heck are you?"

The new boy whose appearance was quite weak introduced himself, "My name is Sey. Nice to meet you." He smiled, "And what's your name?"

Antonio lifted a brow and Romano his fist, "WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? How dare you address yourself to el Capitán in such a casual way?"

The Spaniard commented his henchman's outburst of fury just by a stern gaze. It was clear that he took Sey's informal greeting as insolence.

Sey looked like a proper Charlie and pointed his finger into Antonio's direction, "Does this mean… HE's the Captain? But he has brown hair!"

Romano crossed his arms by upswelling his chest and making a serious expression, "It does. His hair has always been brown, you stupid ass!"

The new aspirant gritted his teeth because of this vulgar insult. He opened his mouth for a counter insult but he was intimidated by Antonio's mad gaze. Thus he felt like he had to apologize. He saluted, "I'm sorry. I asked to become a member of your crew and your substitute said it was ok if I clean the deck and such. Please forgive my rudeness, Capt'n!"

The Spaniard didn't seem pleased though. Quite the contrary, he narrowed his eyes and shook his head. His Italian henchman rolled his eyes, "Gaaawd, he's so stupid!"

Therefore the new aspirant felt the urge to punch him. But before he could do it Antonio finally opened his mouth, "Substitute? Do you mean Van de Velde?"

The scrawny boy nodded his head.

"Well then. Welcome in my crew." Antonio said almost benevolently. Romano protested, "But… Toni!" The Spaniard stepped further and patted one of Romano's shoulders, "You should help our new member. Go ahead." Then he gave him a push into the newbie's direction.

"You want me to help him cleaning?" The Italian asked. Antonio answered with a creepy smile. So Romano didn't dare to ask further questions.

"I'm done with cleaning. There's nothing left for him to help me." Sey interfered.

Antonio answered with a sharp gaze, "Are you saying you oppose my orders?"

The newbie shook his head unassertively, "N-no, Capt'n. I-I'm sorry…"

"Go ask Van de Velde for bandages." Antonio ordered while turning his back to his henchmen and continuing cutting the vegetable for the meal.

Romano sighed. It couldn't be helped when Antonio was like this. So he approached the door. Sey followed him. But before they could leave the room Antonio pointed out, "And newbie, call me El Capitán, not Capt'n. Understood?"

The newbie affrighted and nodded hectically, "Yes, Captai… I mean Capitán."

Antonio didn't turn around. "Fine." was his only answer.

The youngsters left the caboose.

"Well, that was strange…" The new member pointed out when they reached the deck of the ship. Romano raised a brow, "What exactly do you mean?" His voice showed a certain undertone.

"The Captain is kinda creepy, dontcha think?" Sey stated his viewpointt.

The Italian went one step further and stood right before the new angular boy who wore a headscarf. Then he stemmed his hands on his hips and breathed in deeply, "Listen newbie. There's rules on this ship. First, don't ever dare to call him Captain again. It's Capitán. Get that in your head! He is a proud Spaniard and not a fucking island monkey. Second, don't ever spread gossip about our Boss. He is not creepy… unless you proof to be not worth his respect. So shut up and follow my instructions." Then he stepped forward.

Well, it looked like Van de Velde was right: Romano was certainly a bossy brat!

Sey narrowed his view and followed the brown haired Italian, "You are no one to give me orders! The only one who can do that beside the Captain himself is his substitute. And that's not you, are you?"

"You did it again! I said don't call him Captain, you stupid ass! And I may not be El Vice Capitán but I was basically born into this crew. So different than you I own domestic authority! That means my words weight more than yours, _compreso_?" Romano proclaimed by using his hands to make wild suggestions.

The new member seemed irritated, "But the Vice Capt'n said I shouldn't listen to you. So whose order am I supposed to follow?"

Before Romano could say anything they heard the answer from a deep smoky voice, "Mine!" It was El Vice Capitán's one. He stood a few steps away from both of them and was smoking his huge pipe, looking as scary as usual.

Romano clinched a fist, "Why did you tell him he shouldn't listen to me, Van?" The tall pale man inhaled his tobacco and approached the Italian. But he went by and just patted Romano's head by stating honestly, "Because you're a brat with no manners."

"I'M NOT!" Romano protested loudly. The newbie giggled. "Vice Capit'n, I cleaned the deck. Is there anything else you need me for now?"

Van de Velde's clear blue eyes revealed that he considered his answer, "You two could check the storage room. We've run out of gun powder since our last battle. It has to be refilled. Write down how much we need." Then he gave Sey a pad of paper and a pencil, "I hope your handwriting is better than Romano's."

The Italian kicked Van… though it hadn't any effect to the tall man. "Why are you always picking on me? It's not fair!" Van slightly pushed Romano into Sey's direction. Then he inhaled the smoke of his pipe ad breathed out a little cloud of smoke, "Just do as I say. We will arrive at a new port in a few hours when it will probably already be dark. Until then we need to know how much gun powder there's to restore. So hurry up and help our greenhorn."

Romano crossed his arms, "Ok ok, I am going to baby-sit, _sacripante_."

The newcomer just chastised him with a grim face. Then he turned away with his head held high. The Italian followed him, "Hey, don't go. That's the wrong direction, you fool!" Sey twitched his shoulders, "So? Then show me how you handle a _baby_ that goes into the wrong direction, Mr Baby-sitter!" He smirked.

Romano looked down his nose at him and turned away, "Ok, it's you who ends up in the wrong corner, not me. Hasta la vista, _baby_!" and he went away, his head held waaaay to high…

"SO YOU CAN WRITE DOWN HOW MUCH GUN POWDER WE'LL NEED WITHOUT A PAD OF PAPER?" The newcomer shouted from behind and waved the paper in his hand, with an impish smirk on his face. Romano stopped immediately. He turned around and stepped forward to approach the aspirant who wore a headscarf quite fast. Then he tried to grab the paper, "Hand it over!" But the newbie moved his hand in, "Sorry pal, but the Vice Capt'n said it's me who should write. Remember?" Then he giggled and ran forward.

Romano fumed, "FINE THEN! Just do what you want, asshole. I'm not responsible! And stop that Captain already!" But again, Sey just giggled although he felt offended by Romano's vulgar language.

They eventually reached the gun powder's storage room where most of the barrels were stored. Most of them were empty. Romano sighed, "The last battle really depleted almost all of our gun powder. Also, the ship got bombed. There are some lacks we have to repair." Then he smirked mischievously, "But our enemies got it even worse…" He walked along the barrels and mumbled how much gun powder there was to be refilled.

Sey had no clue about this topic. Therefore he just wrote down all the numbers Romano wanted him to note. Later he got curious, "Romano?"

The Italian twitched by hearing his name spoken out by such a soft voice, "What's the matter?" He asked.

The newbie opened his mouth for a second time, "Well, …"

Romano suddenly realized that for a man his new companion's lips were much too full and shiny. He even thought that they looked kissable. … He shook his head. What the hell was he thinking all of a sudden? Didn't he have a crush on…? No, he was not gay! He was a proud Italian macho and one day he would prove this Spanish bastard!

Suddenly he was shaken by a hand on his shoulder, "Are you even listening? Stop daydreaming!"

"I'm not daydreaming!" Romano answered self defending.

Sey turned nearer and smirked insinuating, "Have you been dreaming about your sexy Capitán?"

The Italian stumbled, "What are you talking about, you stupid ass?"

"I just felt like I interrupted something when I entered the caboose…"

"YOU DID NOT!"

Sey giggled, "You even called him by his first name although he's the Captain. What was his name again, Antonio?"

Romano's face turned red like a tomato, "THAT'S NONE OF YOUR BUISNESS! We are close indeed… but not THAT close."

The boy with the slightly tanned skin coquetted, "But you wish you were, am I right?"

"YOU'RE NOT!" Romano stated bashfully.

"Liar…"

"I'M NOT LYING, YOU GAY ASS!"

"Whatever. I have a question. I wonder, why does everyone on this ship have a healthy tanned skin except for the Vice Captain?"

The Italian grit his teeth, "Again, it's Capitán." Then he explained, "That's because Van is from Netherlands whereas most of the others come from Southern Europe, especially from Spain."

The newbie seemed curious, "And where do you come from?" He turned a little too close for Romano's taste. So the brunette started to feel uneasy and stepped backwards, "Well, I-I am from Italy, more precisely from Southern Italy." "Where is that?" Sey asked. Romano got annoyed, "Gosh, don't tell me you don't know!"

But Sey didn't seem to care at all. He wanted to know more about these Netherlands. "Are there more men with pale hair and skin? Do they also have green eyes and own a ship?" His eyes were filled with curiosity.

All these questions seemed suspicious. "Why do you ask me all these questions? And by the way Van has blue eyes if you haven't noticed. Blue like ice. How fitting for that cold hearted monster…"

Sey raised a finger, "But your Capitán's eyes were green. I could have sworn that he was blonde though…"

Romano looked irritated. This guy got even stranger… "Blonde hair? Why should Antonio have blonde hair? That would look horrible! And why does it matter that he has green eyes?"

Sey seemed pensive, "I suppose… I mistook your Antonio for someone else… Someone whose eyes shine even greener." And his cheeks blushed slightly.

"He's not MY Antonio!" Romano freaked out.

Sey just gave him a subtle gaze that Romano dodged with a counter answer, "Uhm… well, any other physics of the man you saw? What's the matter with that guy anyway?"

The newbie nodded his head, "I remember that he had really fuzzy eyebrows. They were pretty noticeable but I got distracted by his green eyes, so I didn't pay attention to them until…"

"FUZZY BROWS?" Romano screamed.

"Shhh!"

"YOU GOTTA BE KIDDIN!"

The aspirant twitched his shoulders, "Why is it such a big deal? They didn't even make him look ugly or something. Quite the contrary!" He stated.

Romano pointed his finger on the new comrade, "Ok, that's it. You must be gayer as gay and your taste is horrible! That fucking bastard you're talking about must be Captain Kirkland. That monkey ass is Antonio's nemesis and I fucking hate him! Antonio's scars are all his fault just like it's his fault that I slipped out on a banana yesterday! And his fuzzy big fat brows of pure evil DO make him look ugly! How can you even say 'quite the contrary'? That rum swigging bastard shall go to hell!"

"What does a banana have to do with…?"

"SHUT UP! He's our fucking enemy." Then Romano grabbed the pad of paper from Sey's hand and looked up the notes, "GAWD, even your handwriting is gay! It's much too tidy. So girly!"

The new henchman swallowed nervously.

Romano asked further questions, "So what do you want from that monkey ass? Are you a spy or something?"

"Well,…" Sey seemed nervous. He hesitated to state his thoughts precisely as if he felt caught.

This made Romano become angry and he grabbed the tanned skinned boy's neck to push him against a wall. The boy was truly surprised by this sudden action and gasped for breath.

"Who exactly are you?" Romano asked ominously, "Are you a spy or something? Tell me the truth! I won't let you harm my Boss!"

The aspirant's eyes reflected alert and his body slightly trembled. He didn't expect the Italian to act like this.

Since he kept silent Romano went on, "Answer me! I asked you something!" But his rough action didn't make Sey answer; they only brought tears to his eyes which made the Italian feel so guilty all of a sudden that he released his grip. The newbie sank to the bottom and held his throat coughing.

Romano tried to cover the guilt he was feeling with his tsundereness, "You are so weak, you sissy!" He stated. But as the aspirant didn't seem to recover, he bent down to him and asked as if everything was ok. He tried to pat Sey's head because he felt like if he had to apologize but the boy with the slightly brown skin slapped his hand away by sending him a gaze that warned him with defiance, "Don't ever touch me again or you will regret it."

Romano couldn't understand this serious reaction because he was used to quarrels. They were part of his daily life, the life on a pirate's ship surrounded by chunky men. He protested and pinned the tanned skinned boy against the wall again quite roughly, "C'on, don't be such a prissy now! I have the right to know if you are a spy or something. Just tell me who you a-"

The aspirant hit him between his legs with his boots and Romano coughed. In the fury of this brawl the Italian stripped off Sey's headscarf… revealing LONG wavy black hair. The sudden surprise even covered the pain his vital region's had to bear.

"You… YOU ARE A GIRL?"

Sey didn't know how to answer. This was bad, VERY bad!

Romano turned away from her. He just realized that he had choked a woman! Since he lived in the pirate crew he didn't know much about women but Antonio taught him at least that they had to be treated more carefully because they were much weaker than men and therefore could be injured easily. Now the reason for this new aspirant's weak appearance was so plausible.

Sey stood up on her own, tapped off the dust from her clothes and cleared her throat, "Please don't tell anyone. I will get off the ship as soon as we have reached the next port. Neither I'm a spy, nor will I cause any trouble. I promise!"

Romano stood up as well, "But… what is a woman doing here anyway?"

"I am searching for someone and I thought I'd find him on this ship. I thought he was the Captain… but I was mistaken. I'm sorry to bother." She reached out one of her hands, "Would you give me back my headscarf? I need it to cover my hair."

But he didn't hand it over. "I'm sorry, I can't. I have to inform Boss. Women on ships bring misfortune." At least this was the reason Antonio told him why there were no women on ships. Then he approached the door.

"NOOO!" Sey ran after him, turned before him and pressed her back against the door. "Please don't! I said I won't cause any trouble. Can't you just… take it a secret?" She tried to smile as dolce as she could.

"No."

"Why not? I won't stay here forever." She turned nearer and gestured trying to explain, "Remember like I said I was searching for..." her lips formed a slight smile but she suppressed what she seemed to be wanting to say, "that monkey ass?"

Romano nodded. Then he crossed his arms, "Do you have a crush on monkey ass or what's with that question and your stupid grin?" He pierced her with his gaze.

"NOOO!" She shook her head vehemently. "There's something I need to ask him. He is the only one who can give me an answer."

Romano raised a brow, "And what answer exactly?"

"I'm sorry. That's very private. I can't tell you…" She answered meekly.

He already attempted to counter something but she interfered, "It's not important for you anyway! My point is I mistook this ship for his and therefore I need to leave your crew as soon as possible anyway to find him. So why don't you just let me stay here until we have reached the next port? Van de Velde said there are just a few hours left anyway."

"Because it's my duty and women on deck bring misfortune." Romano repeated and stepped forward. He didn't know how to handle this situation because he wasn't used to women.

Sey grabbed the clothes on his back, "Ok. Go, tell your dear Anton a lie and say There's a spy on our ship! even though I'm not! But can you also tell him you love him?" She smirked.

Romano turned around, "I DON'T LOVE HIM! … And btw his name is Antonio!"

She smirked "Really? My impression was different when I interrupted you two turtledoves a short while ago…"

Romano ranted, "I DON'T GIVE A SHIT ON YOUR IMPRESSION!"

But Sey kept on, "Even I could feel the tension in the air when he licked your finger…" She coquetted.

"BECAUSE I WAS BLEEDING!"

"… and your cheeks had a flashy pink. … But they are even redder now." She laughed. "May it be unreturned love?"

"Just shut up! That's none of your business!"

He turned around and made his way out. Sey followed him asking, "And what if I help you?"

Romano stopped. He just turned his head, "Why would I want you to help me?"

"Well, …" She sounded self-confident. "I will make him love you back. I know the language of heart!" Oh course, she knew. She was a mermaid. But there was no way to reveal her true self to that Italian boy.

Romano turned around and amber eyes looked into the girl's ones. He was considering her offer for a moment, "And in return you want me to hide your true identity?"

"You got it!" She stated winking. "Let's share a secret."

Romano seemed doubtful, "How would he… recognize me? I'm a guy!"

**End of Chapter 4**

_Yeah, the tsundere collaboration consists of Romano and Sey! Did you expect Arthur to show up? 8D Haha, I got you!  
><em>

_Romano is such a stupid (but lovely :3 3 ) little brat! If Sey is going to leave the ship as soon as they've reached the next port (which will be in a few hours according to what Van de Velde said) there won't be much time left for her to help him with his love problem! xDDDD_

_According to "In heaven the lovers are Italian" Romano must pretty well know how to handle a girl… but c'on! He's still too young if you consider that he spent almost every day of his life surrounded by men. ;)_

_They will meet Arthur again in the next chapter as soon as Antonio's ship has reached the next port. I PROMISE! And then I can finally write some romantic scenes again. :3_

**GLOSSARY FOR FOREIGN WORDS**

(Italian)

Romano: "Ahi!" – "Ouch!"

Romano: "Compreso?" – "Understood?"

Romano: "sacripante" – "blatherskite"

(Spanish)

Romano: "Hasta la vista, baby!" – "Bye bye, baby!"

"tsundereness" – a misture of the words "tsundere" (Japanese) and the English suffix "-ness" that turns verbs into nouns


End file.
